Coach Mike Major Named GLIAC "Coach of the Year," Three Player Receive Honors

BAY CITY, Mich. - The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletics Conference (GLIAC) released its 2010 season awards Oct. 26, announcing Saginaw Valley State University women's tennis head coach Mike Major as GLIAC "Coach of the Year". The Cardinals finished their 2010 season with an overall record of 5-9 and went 4-7 in conference play. The seventh-place finish this season matches Major's best finish as the SVSU tennis team's head coach.

"It's as much of a reflection on me as it is on the team in terms of being able to take the teachings and the lessons throughout the course of the year and bringing it all together at the end of the season when it mattered most in the GLIAC tournament," commented Major, an Essexville Garber graduate and former Bay City All Saints and Midland Dow coach.

Three Cardinal team members received GLIAC honors as well. Sophomore Yunjiao Shangguan (Chengdu, China/Shiyang HS) was the only Saginaw Valley State University representative on the 2010 All-GLIAC Team. Shangguan finished the season with a no. 1 singles record of 7-5, which ranks third overall in the conference and a no. 1 doubles record of 6-7.

Lone senior Cortney Heileman (East China, Mich./St. Clair HS) and freshman Andrea Calhoun (Midland, Mich.) both earned Honorable Mention recognition. Heileman finished this season with a no. 4 singles record of 5-5 and a no. 3 doubles record of 5-6; "I think Cortney received Honorable Mention for her leadership and overall growth as a player over her four-year career as a Cardinal" Major stated. Calhoun ended the season with a 7-5 finish in no. 2 singles and a 6-8 record in no. 1 doubles; Major commented, "as a freshman, this is a great start to Calhoun's career as a Cardinal tennis player."